Door lock



J. H. ROETHEL May 5, 1953 DOOR LOCK 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 18, 1944 J. H. ROETHEL May 5, 1953.

DOOR LOCK 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 18, 1944 INVENTOR.

J. H. ROETHEL May 5, 1953 DOOR LOCK 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 18, 1944 /IIIIIIIIIIHIII 4 INVENTOR.

Patented May 5, 1953 DOOR LOCK John H. Roethel, Detroit, Mich,

Roethel Engineering Corporation,

assignor to Detroit,

Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application August 18, 1944, Serial No. 550,036

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to latch mechanism for swinging doors. Although the invention is applicable to various types of door structures, it is especially useful in connection with latch mechanism adapted for use in connection with doors of automobiles and other vehicles and contemplates the provision of improved mechanism which combines in relatively simple form such desired features as simplicity in construction, operational efficiency and mechanical practicability.

An object, therefore, of the invention is to provide an improved mechanism of the above class or type which is relatively simple and compact in construction, economical to manufacture, easily operated, durable and efficient in use, and which in operation is capable of providing an easy and relatively quiet closing door.

In accordance with the embodiment of the invention, herein illustrated by way of example, there is provided a rotatable plate having a latch bolt projecting therefrom at a point offset from the axis of rotation of the plate. There is also provided a lever fulcrumed intermediate its ends, which lever has an operative connection with a shiftable detent. The detent is adapted to lock the rotatable plate in a latching position of the bolt. The fulcrumed lever is engageable at each end thereof by manually operable means for selectively swinging the lever to shift the detent to release the plate.

A specific feature of construction is that the connection between the lever and the detent lies between one end. of the lever and the fulcrum thereof. Another specific feature of construction is that single resilient means is provided for urging the lever and detent into plate locking position and also for urging said bolt toward bolt unlatching position.

Other objects of this invention will appear in the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

Fig. l is a fragmentary perspective view of the inside of an automobile body provided with swinging doors upon which latch devices in accordance with the present invention are installed.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section taken substantially through lines 2-2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken substantially through lines 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken substantially through lines i-d of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 5 is a view in elevation taken substantially from lines 5-5 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but illustrating the mechanism in unlatched position.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken substantially through lines 'i'! of Fig. 4 looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the bolt in latched position with respect to the striker member.

Figs. 8 and 9 are views somewhat similar to Fig. '7 but illustrating, respectively, unlatched and safety positions of the bolt with respect to the striker member.

Before explaining in detail the present invention it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

In the drawings there is illustrated, by way of example, one embodiment of the present invention as applied to a door and door frame structure, such as that of an automobile body. As illustrated in Fig. 1, the automobile body is designated generally at A and is provided with front and rear doors B and C, respectively. Each swinging door is hinged at one edge so as to swing against a common door post or body pillar in accordance with conventional practice and comprises an outer metal door panel Hi and an inner metal door panel H. The panel it terminates in a transverse jamb edge or portion l2 facing the fixed jamb face or edge 13 of the door frame post or body pillar Hi.

The latch device embodying the present invention is shown in detail as applied to the front door B of the automobile and comprises a case plate I5 engaging the inner surface of'the inner door panel H and provided with a transversely extending flange It adapted to fit against the inner surface of the jamb edge [2 of the door. The case plate is rigidly secured in suitable manner, such as by screws, to the door panel portions Hand l2. Mounted against the inner face of the case plate flange it is a bolt carrying plate or member ll which is rotatable upon a pivot or stud IS in the form of a shoulder rivet secured to the case plate flange I6. Rigidly secured to the plate member I! at a point spaced from the pivotal axis [8 of the plate is a cylindrical latch bolt [9. This bolt is thus carried by the plate IT eccentrically and projects outwardly through an arcuate slot 20 in the case plate flange l and also an arcuate slot 2| in the jamb face l2 of the door, the slots and 2i registering one with the other. The; bolt carrying plate IT is formed on its periphery at points above the pivot lit with inclined abutments or shoulders 22 and 23, the shoulder 22 representing the safety locking position of the bolt andthe shoulder 23 representing the final locking position thereof. At a point spaced in a counterclockwise direction from the shoulder 23 is a third abutment or shoulder 24 adapted; as later described, to provide in part additional. means for locking the plate [1 in the final locking position of the bolt.

Associated with the bolt carrying plate or ratchet member I! is a detent or pawl 25 which is pivoted to swing up anddown upona pivot stud or shoulder rivet 25 secured to the. case plate flange, [6. It will be noted that the plate H, as viewed from Figs. 3 and 6, is rotatable in a clockwise direction when the bolt moves from the unlatched position shown in Fig. 6 to the latched position shown in Fig. 3. The detent 25 is, therefore, pivoted at 28 adjacent the inner side of the door and is provided with a dog or detent portion 25a provided with an inclined contacting face or edge engageable successively with the shoulders 22 and 23. when the door is closed. The detent portion 25a by virtue of the clockwise movement of the bolt carrying plate locks the :1

plate against counter-clockwise move-ment when in engagement with either of the shoulders 22 or 23.

The detent 25 is actuated for the purpose of swinging it out of locking position with respect to the plate I! by means of a swinging operating lever 27. This lever is mounted to turn or rotate upon a pivot stud or shoulder rivet 28 secured to the case plate. The upper arm of the lever extends in a generally horizontal direction toward the inner side of the door and at an intermediate point on this upper arm portion a headed pin 29, rigidly secured to the outer end ofthe detent 25. pro ects through a horizontal lost motion slot 3!! in the lever. Thus, the pin and slot connection 29 and 30 provides an articulat d connection between the lever and the detent and, hence, it will be seen that by raising or swingin upwardly the upper arm portion of the lever 21 the outer end of the detent will be lifted, thereby withdrawing the detent portion 25a from engagement with the shoulder Him the shoulder 23. Thus, by swin ing the lever 2" about its fulcrum 28 a short distance in a clockwise direction the detent 25 will be swung in the opposite direction about its pivot 26 bv reason of the pin and slot connection 28 and 30 thereby releasing the plate IT.

The bolt carr ing plate I! i constant y urged toward the posit on shown in Fig. 6, namely, the unlatching position of the door latch when the door is open, by means of a tension spring 3|. This spring not only tends at all: times to impart counter-clockwise rotative movement to the plate I! but at the same time exerts an effort to swing the lever 2,! about its fulcrum therebyurging the detent 25 toward the plate H. Accordingly, the spring 3|.is connected at its lower endgtoa pin 33 secured to the, plate H at a point outwardly of the pivot [8 The upper. nd of the sp ing. 3!

is connected to a pin 32 secured to the lever 21 at a point inwardly of the fulcrum 28 of the lever. The connection 32 of the spring with the lever may be relatively close to the fulcrum 2B in order to reduce, as desired, the leverage action exerted by the spring to hold the lever and detent down toward the plate H. The position of the spring 3| when the door i unlatched is shown in Fig. 6 and it will be seen that the downward pull on the lever and detent exerted by the spring in this position of the latch bolt is relatively light. However, as the plate I! is rotated from the position of Fig. 6 toward the position of Fig. 3, the tension of the spring progressively increases and, hence, in the final locking position of the bolt, as shown in Fig. 3, considerable effort is exerted bythe spring to hold the detent in looking position against the final locking shoulder 23. By virtue of the foregoing construction it will, therefore, be seen that a single spring means, anchored at 33 to the bolt carrying plate and at 32 to the detent operating lever, maybe utilized to return the plate I! and the bolt. H! to unlatching position and also to hold the detent down against the periphery of the plate [.1 while at the same time the detent 25 is held down against the periphery of the plate I! under progressively increasing pressure as the bolt and plate move toward latching position.

The detent operating lever 27 has a depending extension or crank arm 34 offset longitudinally at its lower end to provide an enlarged or widened portion Sea disposed for engagement by a push button plunger 35 manually operable from the outside of the door. The plunger is urged into retracted position by a compression spring housed within a recess 3'. in an outside fixed door handle 38. By'pushing the plunger 35inward y against the action of the spring 35 in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3, the arm extension 34 of the lever 21 will be swung inwardly thereby raising the opposite endof the lever and withdrawing the detent 25 from engagement with the locking shoulder 23 or 22.

Pivoted to the case plate l5 at the inner side of the door is a bell crank lever 39, the lever being rotatable upon a stud or shoulder rivet 40. The lower arm 39a of this lever is oiTset transversely at 3% (Fig. 2) and this offset portion terminates in an outwardly projecting actuating finger 39c extending beneath a portion 21a on the end of the lever 21, this portion being formed by embossing the metal of the lever at its upper terminal end inwardly to increase its bearing contact with the finger 390. The upwardly extending arm 39b of the lever 39 carries a pin 4| extending through a longitudinal slot 42 in one end of a remote control link 43. The opposite end of the link 43 is pivotally connected by means of a pin 44 to a bell crank lever 45 which extends between and is pivoted at 46 to the bifurcated ends 41a of an adjustable mounting plate or bracket 41 secured to the inner metal door panel H by means of screws 48 extending through adjusting slots 59 in the bracket, see Fig. 5. The lever 45 has an actuating arm 45a extending through an aperture in the panel I l for engagement by an inside push button plunger 46. which projects through a hole 410 in the outer trim panel I48 secured to the metal panel H. The plunger 46!! is secured to a push button 52 extend ng through a hole in a fixed inner door handle I, inward movement of the plunger being resisted by a compression spring 490 housed within a recess 5!! in the door handle. From this construction it will be seen that by pressing the push button 52 inwardly the lever 45 will be rotated about its pivot 46 thereby retracting the link 43 and rotating the lever 39 about its pivot 40 causing the finger 390 of the lever to raise the inner end 21a of lever 21 and withdrawing the detent 25 from engaging position with the looking shoulder 23 or 22.

In accordance with the present invention additional means is provided for locking the bolt carrying plate I! in the position shown in Fig. 3 when this plate as well as the latch bolt 19 has been moved to the final locking position. This additional locking means for the plate I! comprises a locking lever 53 having anin'wardly offset portion 530: pivoted at its lower end at 1' to the case plate l5. The lever is embossed outwardly at 53b to provide a channel portion having an upper wedge shaped or tapering contacting face 530 adapted to engage beneath the looking shoulder 24 on the plate H, as shown in Figs. 3 and i. The lever 53 is guided in its swinging motion about its fulcrum Ed by means of an arcuate slot 55 in the lever through which extends a guide pin 55 secured to the case plate. Pivoted at 51 to the inner end of the lever 53 is a vertically extending rod or plunger 58 adapted to project through the garnish molding at the lower edge of the window opening and carrying a knob or button 59 at its upper end, as shown in Fig. l. The knob 55) is accessible at the inner side of the window glass of the door and when pusheddown will shift the plunger 53 downwardly to swing the lever 53 in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. i thereby swinging the locking projection 53b of the lever out from beneath the locking shoulder 24 thereby releasing the plate l'l. Upward movement of the plunger 58 will swing the lever 53 in the reverse direction thereby shifting the looking or detent portion 53b of the lever into position beneath the shoulder 2 1, thus locking the plate I! against rotative movement toward unlatched position of the bo t. The inclined contacting face 530 of the detent portion 531) will produce a wedging engagement with the face of the shoulder 26, thus causing the detent portion 53b to engage the locking shoulder firmly and also providing a take-up to compensate for wear or variations due to allowable tolerances in production. It is important to note from this construction that the locking lever 53 with its detent portion 531), which cooperates with the locking shoulder 24 on plate I1, is operated entirely independently of the detent 25 and will be effective to hold the plate I! and latch bolt in the fully latched position thereof irrespective of operation of either the outside push button plunger 35 or the inside push button plunger iii-ii to release the detent 25 by operation of the lever 21. Hence, with the inside locking lever 53 in its locking position shown in Figs. 3 and 4 either the inside or the outside push button may be freely pressed to shift the detent 25 upwardly away from looking engagement with the shoulder 23 without unlocking the door. The locking lever 53 has the additional advantage of providing in conjunction with the detent 25 two separate means for locking the latch bo t in its final looking position thus insuring greater safety during operation of the vehicle.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the latch bolt I9 is movable between unlatching and latching positions in an arcuate path as defined by the arcuate slots 20 and 2 l. The bolt is actuated when the door is closed by means of a striker member which is preferably mounted upon the jamb edge I3 of the pillar or fixed upright mem ber of the door frame. In the present instance the striker comprises a pressed metal plate 60 which is stamped into a hollow generally rectangular member adapted to be secured to the door frame by screws 6|. The striker plate is formed with a curved slot 62 open at its lower end and extending inwardly and upwardly as shown in Figs. '7 to 9 inclusive. The upper end of the slot 52 is closed and also shaped to conform substantially to the shape of the bolt l9. Projecting into the upper end of the slot 62 of'the striker member is a resilient rubber bumper G3 which is housed within a recess 65 in the striker plate and secured therein by one of the screws 6|. The lower face of the bumper 63 is lined or covered by means of a spring steel liner member 65. This member is in the form of a spring having its opposite ends anchored within notches in the bumper The spring liner 65 provides a metal wear resisting surface between the rubber bumper and the bolt while enabling the bolt to compress the bumper somewhat when the bolt is forced through the slot 62 into the upper end thereof. It will be noted that the upper end of the slot 62 has a generally vertically extending wall 62a engaged by the bolt and which positively prevents outward movement of the bolt when in its final locking position as shown in Fig. '7. Secured to the jamb edge of the door is a wedge member 66 which is adapted to engage and ride over the upper inclined or wedge face 68a of the striker plate [it during closing movement of the door. The cooperation of these wedge parts insures proper closing movement of the door to cause the bolt to enter properly the lower end of the slot 62 and also provides a positive means for holding the door against downward movement as a result of vibrations incident to operation of the vehicle. Coaction between the bolt and the resilient rubber bumper E3 resists upward movement of the door resulting from vibrations consequent to operation of the vehicle. Thus, when the door is fully closed it is held relatively firmly against vertical vibrational motion by engagement of the wedge member 66 with the upper inclined surface Gila of the striker plate and by engagement of the bolt [9 with the bumper 63. The spring liner 65 covers the entire lower surface of the rubber bumper 63 and, hence, transmits the force of impact of the bolt throughout the cross-section of the bumper.

It will be noted that the surface of the plate I? contacts smoothly the inner surface of the case plate flange l6 and is constructed so as to provide a portion which will entirely cover and close the slot 20 in the case plate when the bolt is in unlatched position as shown in Fig. 6. Hence, when the door is open there will be no undesirable open slot through the jamb edge of the door exposing the inside of the latch device since the plate H at this time will effectually close the slots 20 and 2 i. It will also be noted that the reverse slots 52 and 21 (see Figs. 7 to 9) through which the bolt travels produce what may be termed a scissors locking action and, hence, a very efiicient means for holding the bolt in latching position.

Although the manually operated means for re leasin the detent 25 are herein shown in the form of inside and outside push buttons, it will be understood that conventional turning handles may be substituted for actuating the lever 21. In such case it will be noted that when the door is locked by the lever 53 both handles would be free to turn since any operation of the lever accompanied by release of the detent cannot eliect unlatching of the door until the lever 53 has been shifted to release its detent portion 535 from loclting engagement with shoulder 23. Where it is desired to use key operated look on one or more of the doors it will be understood. that the loci; cylinder which receives the key may be installed in a hole in the push button plunger suitable means being operated upon turning the key to lock the plunger against inward movement.

I claim:

1. In a door latch, a rotatable plate having a latch bolt projecting therefrom at a point offset from the axis of rotation of the plate, a lever fulcrunied intermediate its ends, a shiftable cletent adapted to lock said plate in a latching position of the bolt, an operative connection between the lever and detent, and .l.e.11ually operable means engageable Wlllh each end of the lever for selectively swinging the same to shift the cletent to release said plate.

2. In a door latch, a rotatable plate having a latch bolt projecting therefrom at a point offset from the axis of rotation of the plate, a lever fulcruinecl intermediate its ends, a shiftable detent adapted to lock said plate in. a latchin position of the bolt, an operative connection between the lever and detent, and manually operable means engageable with each end of the lever for selectively swinging the same to shift the detent to release said plate, said connection lying between one end of the lever and the fulcrum thereof. 7

3. In a door latch, a rotatable plate having a latch bolt projecting therefrom at a point offset from the axis of rotation of the plate, a lever fulcrumed intermediate its ends, a shiftable detent adapted to lock said plate in a latching position of the bolt, an operative connection between the lever and detent, manually operable means engageable With each end of the lever for selectively swinging the same to shift the detent to release said plate, and a single resilient means for urging said lever and cletent into plate locking position and also for urging said plate toward bolt unlatching position.

JOHN H. ROETHEL.

References Cited in the file or" this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 435,109 Woodcock Aug. 26, 1890 443,298 Lecellier Mar. 17, 1891 1,127,721 Bazille Feb. 9, 1915 1,253,545 Tompkins Jan. 15, 1918 1,389,339 Anderson Aug, 30, 1921 1,435,971 Mueller Nov. 21, 1922 1,504,967 Orendoril Aug. 12, 1924 1,865,581 Miller July 5, 1932 2,013,285 Mooney Sept. 3, 1935 2,094,413 Schonitzer Sept. 28, 1937 2,131,198 Tasman Sept. 27, 1938 2,173,765 Potter Sept. 19, 1939 2,218,183 Springer Oct. 15, 1940 2,231,075 Lakin Feb. 11, 1941 2,232,628 North et al Feb. 18, 1941 2,246,782 Dali June 24, 1941 2,272,241 Fendrlng Feb. 10, 1942 2,322,040 Maruri June 15, 1943 2,344,532 Brantingson Mar. 21, 1944 2,373, 37 Endter Apr. 10, 1945 

